Collapsible tube expeller



June 15, 1937; P, M, HARWICK 2,083,603'

COLLAPSIBLE TUBE EXPELLER Filed Feb. 25, 1937 INVENTOR PAUL M. HA/W/c/r ATTRNEYS Patented June 15, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to an expeller for conveniently removing the liquid or pasty contents of a collapsible tube.

One of the commonest types* of containers for 5 pasty or liquid materials especially when the con- 'tents are to be dispensed in small quantities 4are those known as collapsible tubes. 'I'hese comprise a tubular member made from thin sheet metal having a closure at one end comprising a heavier portion with a nozzle that can be closed with a suitable type of cap. 'I'he other end of the tube is usually employed for lling it and is closed simply by pushing the two edges of the tube adjacent each other, folding them over and attaching a thin metallic strip to hold the folded portion of the tube in position. When the contents of the tube are to be removed, usuallyin small amounts at a. time, the cap Iis removed and pressure applied to the body of the tube. This forces the liquid from the nozzle end :where it is applied to the desired surface.

'I'hese tubes are used for dispersing a number of different types of materials including paint pigments, oils, tooth paste, medicines, ointments,

creams of various types, etc. One of the problems in using suchj is to expel all of the contents without` a substantial amount of waste. .people when removing the contents apply pressure to the tube at various points but usually near the bottom and then gradually roll up the end of the tube. This however results in a corrugated deformation of the tube and the entrapment of a portion of the contents in the pockets thereby produced when the tube is presumably empty and results in wasting a portion of the contents. Variy ous suggestions have been made forremoving the contents singly but'most of these involve cumbersome apparatus which must` be ,attached to the wall or other fixed surface and are not useful 40 where theftube must becarried from place to place. This invention seeks vto overcome the difil- I culties inherent in the removal of the contents ,of a collapsible tube and to improve upon the more or less complicated apparatus previously suggested for this purpose.

Among the objects of this invention is the provision of a collapsible tube expeller that is of very fsimpleconstruction, easily attached toa tube but which nevertheless can cleanly remove all of the contents thereof.

Another object is to provide a collapsible tube expeller that may be readily constructed from a plastic material and formed without any moving parts.

It is also an object of this invention to provide Most a collapsible tu-be expeller comprising a unitary rigid slotted rectangular member, the slot extending longitudinally of the member and of a thickness to receive a double layer of the metal of the tube, one edge of the slot opening rapidly to smoothly bear against the content containing portion of the tube and guide the empty portion into the slot.

It is likewise an object of this invention to conveniently manipulated with but one handA thereby releasing the other hand to receive the contents thereof or to hold an object, for example l drawing forming part of this disclosure and in which: y

Figure 1 is a front view of a collapsible tube showing the expeller positioned thereon; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the expeller taken along the line 2--2 of Figure l;

Figure 3 is an end view of the expeller shown in Figure 1 looking in the direction of the arrows on the line 3-3 of that gure;

Figure lv is a sectional View of the expeller illustrated in Figure 1 taken along the line 4--4 of that figure;

Figure 5 is a sectional view similar to Figure 4 showing a modification of the invention; likewise,

Figure 6 is also a sectional view similar to Figure 4 of a further modification; while,

Figure 'l is a longitudinal cross-section view of the expeller illustrated in Figure 1.

Referring to the drawing and particularly provide a collapsible tube expeller that may be l0 Figure 1 thereof, the reference numeral 2, designated a conventional type of collapsible tube having a heavier top end portion 4 terminating in a nozzle 6 normally closed by a screw cap l. The

lower end of the tube through which it may be filled, is closed by pressing the tube along a straight line, folding it over, and attaching a narrow U-shaped clamp I0.

It is usually preferable to attach the expeller to the tube before the lower end'is closed since to obtain best results it is necessary to have a very narrow slot, slightly greater than twice the thickness of the sheet metal forming the tube,

and since the end I0 is considerably thicker than the other portions of the tube whenilattened out, the expeller can be attached and adjusted most conveniently just before the end of the tube is folded over and the clamp I applied.

The expeller designated generally as I2 is preferably formed of some type of hardened plastic 5 material such as for example, bakelite, plastesoid, or any other of the well known types of plastics which can be readily formed or molded and. then hardened to give suflicient rigidity. The expeller is substantially rectangular considered both in plan and elevation although slight variations are possible from the exact shape. Running through the expeller I2 and extending substantially the entire longitudinal distance thereof is a slotl I4 of a length sufficient to receive the slightly in excess of the thickness of the two layers formed when the tube is attened. The upper edge of the slot, or that which is in contact with the filled portion of the tube, is rounded as I6 in order to guide the converging sides of the tube 3 into the slot. This results in a smooth movement of the expeller along the length of the tube and prevents any sharp edges coming in contact therewith which would tend to cut through the thin metal "casing forming the tube and permit the contents to come out at the broken portions. The remainder of the slot comprises substantially parallel sides I8 to prevent any of the material in the filled portion of the tube from passing b`etween the collapsed portion and into the lower portion 5 from which the contents have been expelled. In this way the collapsed portion 5 from which the contents have been completely removed presents a smooth outer surface. Since ythe expeller can'slide along the tube and does not sharply engage with any portion thereof the label which -may be pasted on the outside or the lithographing thereon is in no way damaged and the tube therefore presents a clean legible appearance after the expeller has passed a portion thereof. In this way the name on the outside of the tube is always available and is not destroyed. The tube can therefore always be identied as to its contents.

The bottom of the slot as illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 has its sides always parallel thereby forming a sharp angle with the bottom of the.

expeller. This arrangement may be used to advantage by slightly bending the collapsed tube as it leaves the expeller which will keep it in its operative position at all times. Usually the friction between the parallel sides of the slot and the collapsed section of .the tube is sufcient-V to maintain it in position but the method just described is helpful at times.

vThe modification illustrated in Figure 1 has another feature in the provision of a recessed portion 20 to receive the end of the operators thumb 22 in order to slide the expeller along the tube.

If desired, the'ends of the expeller can be knurled as illustrated in the end view shown in Figure 3 at 24. Alternatively the end of the expeller may contain suitable advertising material such as the trade mark of the manufacturer of the contents of the tube or the like. If this be embossed in the ends, a roughened surface is provided which forms a suitable hold for the ends of the fingers.

In Figure5 is illustrated a modification of the slot structure shown in the preceding figure. This modification resides particularly in that in addition to the rounded portion I6 at the upper end of the expeller slot there is likewise provided at the bottom end a rounded portion 26.

The modification illustrated in Figure 6 which shows a cross-section along the lines 4 4 of the entire tube when it is flattened and of a thickness' expeller illustrated in Figure 1 comprises broadly two oval sections adjacent each other and separated by a distance suicient to receive the two layers of metal comprising the collapsed tube. With this structure the surfaces 28 provide cam surfaces on which the end of the finger or thumb can be projected. If the thumb is placed against the tube as at 30 and at the same time against the edge 28 of the expeller there is a camming action on the expeller which forces it upwardly against the filled portion of the tube and applies pressure to the contents so as to force them through the nozzle. This operation can be carried on very simply since when the thumb is placed in the position indicated in Figure 6 the forefinger lies at the opposite side of the tube and parallel to the expeller. When the thumb is then pres/sed against the tube and likewise against the opposed forenger there is a substantial frictional grip on the end 5 of the tube 2 at the section 3U and the thumb cammed against the surface 28 lapplies the necessary pressure to the expeller.

Figure 7, which is a longitudinal sectional view shows the arrangement of the ends of the slot. In this case they are shown as arcuate as at 32. This form further assists in guiding the tube into the slot and prevents any sharp edges attacking the tube and puncturing it as indicated above which would permit the contents thereof to come out over the surface of the tube at undesired points.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a new and useful type of collapsible tube expeller that can be used in a very natural manner and quite similar to the normal methods of removing the contents but without anyV waste thereof and without damaging the exterior of the tube in the fashion heretofore customary. My expeller is preferably constructed of a single piece of material although where it is to be attached to collapsible tubes after they have been filled it is usually desirable to arrange some means whereby one end portion of the expeller can be Iseparated temporarily from the rest to insert the tube as by sliding the expeller on and then attaching the remainder of the expeller. In Figure 2 I have illustrated a structure whereby this may be accomplished. The end of the expeller I2 is cut at the line 34 substantially at the end of the slot I4 and to one of the two members thereby produced suitable dowel pins or the likey 36 are attached and a corresponding hole or holes provided in the other member. These will form a frictional contact suflicient to hold the member together .after the expeller has been applied to the tube. Obviously other means for restoring-the vunitary construction of the device after it has been applied to a tube can be substituted for that specifically described. In any event. the structure when applied to a tube-is substantially unitary and has no moving parts.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a collapsible tube expeller characterized by the utmost simplicity of structure, ease and cheapness of manufacture, and efficiency in operation. While the invention has been described with reference to certain preferred embodiments these lare to be considered as illustrative, the invention being described in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A collapsible tube expeller comprising a uni' tary rigid slotted rectangular member, the slot extending longitudinally of the member and of a thickness to receive a double layer of the metal l acuariosv of the-tube, one edge o! the slot opening rapidly to smoothly bear against the content containing portion of the tube and guide the emptying portion into the slot.

2; A collapsible tube expeller comprising a unitary rigid slotted rectangular member, the slot extending longitudinally oi the member and of a thickness to receive a double layer of the metal of the tube, the top edge of the slot opening rapidly to smoothly bear against the content containing portion of the tube and guide the emptying portion into the slot and means on the rectangnlar member near the bottom of the slot to receive the fingers for forcing the expeller along the tube. y

3. A collapsible tube expeller comprisinga unitary rigid slotted `rectangular member, the slot extending longitudinally oi the member and of a thickness to receive a double layer of the metal of the tube, the top edge of the slot opening rapidly to smoothly bear against the content containing portion of the tube and guide the emptying portion into the slot and means on the rectangular member near the bottom of the slot forming a cam surface to receive the thrust of the tin-gers for iorclng the expeller along the tube.

4. A collapsible tube expeller comprising a. unltary rigid slotted rectangular member, the slot extending longitudinally of the member and ofa thickness to receivea double layer of the metal of the tube, one edge and the ends of the slot opening rapidly to smoothly bear against the content containing portion of the tube and guide 

